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Thalia Windraider

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GABA
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Jungles of Devaron

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OoC: Anyone is welcome to join​

It was about twelve hours earlier that Thalia had started this adventure. She set off into the jungles to find her prize, one that was inspired, possibly foolishly inspired by a group of rather drunk thieves on Corellia. They had announced their riches, and though they were probably promptly robbed after the encounter in the pub, Thalia had seemed to charm them in letting in a secret of their own prizes. They described this world as a hotbed for religious buffoonery and it seemed to be something many were in the market for, old junk that many rarely remembered, but owning it and knowing something that someone else could care less seemed to give buyers a complex. It was of course a welcomed complex, especially given the amount of credits that came with it. Of course, Thalia inhaled this information and begun her own search for what she could acquire.

This time she came to the jungle world a bit more prepared, enough supplies for travel, and hope that this was not some wild errand. Her bag slung over her shoulder rested against her back and causing her shirt to stick to her back. The feeling was uncomfortable, but not unbearable, her clothes always being wet here from either the rain or the humidity was just part of the job. Though she struggled more with her hair of all things and eventually pulled it back out of her face to tame it, keeping it from coiling back into its obnoxious curls.

Thalia paused and pulled out her datapad, double checking the coordinates to the alter before returning it to her bag. The place had a feeling to it, one she felt since stepping off her ship when she arrived. The best she could do was just ignore it, like many times before where she has discovered it was ideal not to ask questions, because it generally turned out something she did not like. She looked upward to the canopy, unable to see the sun, but with the grey she could see, it was best assumed more rain was coming. Frowning, she pulled out her datapad once more checking the path and her own coordinates, hoping to reach her destination before next rainfall. She was nearly there, and closer to filling her pockets with credits that will follow.

 

Cazus

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Jedi Order
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Jedi Knight

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Cazar
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Nothing was secret, nothing was safe, from the ever-seeing eyes of justice. Jedi Knight Cazus was on the case. Devaron had been a hopping rumor of artifacts, ancient ones at that of religious potential. Just the type of thing a Jedi should investigate. Clouds on the horizon could only mean one thing: this wasn't Tatooine. The weather could be something besides sunny heat. Caz's one weakness... variable weather. For the Jedi, not even a little rain would stop the Jawa on this day though.

Beacon of justice and protector of the innocent Cazus the Jedi Knight wore his usual brown robes which were not good for rain, a blast vest underneath which was also bad for rain, and a few cloth wraps beneath even that (also bad for the rain). His lightsaber was tuckered into his robes, hidden away but easily accessed to dispense justice. A stun pistol also sat at his hip for non-lethal interventions of desperation. Gonky had been left behind as it seemed prudent to have speed and the ability to move over terrain. A wise and heroic Jedi needed to make such decisions despite how amazing Gonky could be.

"Good sir," Caz announced to a local who looked the most rugged. "Point me to the nearest path to your wild jungles!"

Despite a sudden case of confusion, the man seemed able to oblige. Cazus made his way into the jungles just in time to see the clouds getting closer. Coordinates to some alter with potential ancient goods had spread around the scavenger communities of the galaxy recently. It seemed like a few were opting to make the trip, so a protector of good had to go as well. No matter the obstacles (unless it was too hard), the Jawa Jedi intended to succeed. Each step in the moist jungle was terrible. Short legs meant that his robes would get muddy and that he had to take more steps than most others. The force willed it; Caz must continue.

"Almost.... there..," he squeaked to himself as he rushed to beat the rain, loud enough that maybe it would alert nearby travelers as well.

@GABA

 

Scudd Jastain

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Kallus
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"Massive payday they said." The Duros mumbled to himself as he ducked under a low hanging branch that had grown so close to the ground only due to the massive weight of the vines that covered it. "Just there for the taking they said. Except it isn't 'just' kriffing there!"

Indeed Scudd had been wandering around this tiny portion of Deveron for nearly three days now and had yet to find the artifacts that he had been told were out here. Usually he wouldn't stick his neck out simply on hearsay or otherwise he would always be off on some fools errand looking for some lost treasure or other. But the stories that the barkeep on Corellia had overheard and sent him were pretty convincing, plus that particular contact hadn't let him down before. Besides he still had to prove to the syndicate that he was a good earner, but what jobs he could find just didnt have that large of a payout and if the goods out here where as valuable as he had heard then it would be a step in the right direction.

He wore the billowing coat of treated bantha leather over his normal blast vest and durable street clothes, maybe too hot for this particular climate but they were sturdy and the leather had kept the worst of the rain off of him. With the blaster on each hip, stun batton swinging from his belt and goggles perched high on his sweating brow he cut a dashing, if somewhat damp, figure even out here. Used to the dry recycled air and climate control of ships the heat and humidity was certainly problematic for him and after pushing his way passed the tree and into a relatively open spot he took the opportunity to sit and rest a while.

A mouthful of water, a bite from a ration pack and a sip from a flask of wyean's reserve were enough for now. He set about taking off his muddy boots to swap out his damp socks for a relatively fresher pair when a low rumble of thunder rolled over the jungle. Sighing and doing his best to bite back a curse he rushed to put his socks on, if he moved fast enough he might find a decent place to get out of the coming downpour.

He had just finish lacing up one boot when he heard something. Freezing he cocked his head to the side and listened, trying his best to parse through what were common sounds of the jungle for something different. There it was again, the snap of a twig and the rustle of leaves, and.... mumbling? It was hard to make out through the enclosing foliage. He shot to his feet, one dry sock squelching into the mud and drew one of his blasters, keeping it low and to his right side. He may look like an idiot, standing there with one boot off and a sock in the mud, but at least hes prepared for someone or something to come through the trees.


@GABA @Cazar
 

Brahe Sienar

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Jedi Padawan

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Noctyr
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SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!~

The clouds parted , the shifting winds and atmospheric entry of a TIE Ranger screaming through the sky of Devaron rather humorously causing the clouds to form a strange -_- shape in the sky. No doubt the work of the force itself. You see, Brahe was a hotshot pilot. Rather cliche, but also rather handy in the particular situation. The skies were especially turbulent today, but the rather confident young padawan had decided that his piloting skills more than mitigated the risks involved.

He flew the TIE in lower, hovering it above the jungle as he examined the area below with a keen eye, clearly on the lookout for something that wasn't quite the "religious artifacts" that everyone else was here for. No- instead he was here because apparently, there was some kind of rare TIE variant crashed out here, and maybe, just maaaaybe, it had some spare parts for salvage or to tinker with. It was a treasure to Brahe, at least. The TIE continued to hover midair, Brahe's hand still on the control stick as he continued to look around. The ship's sensors weren't picking up any crashes, but there were surely life forms out there. Perhaps humanoids?

He maneuvered the TIE to what appeared to be a nearby clearing, and landed, being eeeextra careful to check if the spot was safe. The whole planet was covered in forest and jungle, and he wasn't really feeling like dealing with any of the local dangerous flora or fauna. He was parked in the middle of what appeared to be remnants of an old battleground- a part of the forest where the Empire had been busy with deforestation efforts.

"I suppose I'll just wait out the storm here...." He said, kicking his feet up and yawning a bit. The TIE Ranger was quite roomy for a TIE variant, and much comfier to boot.

@GABA @Kallus @Cazar
 

Maro Baize

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Cero Serat
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What a day, and a night, and a day before that even! Maro, had made sure to land his own ship far from the site so as not to draw attention to his coming for the prize. When he had initially stepped out, sans his armor, he took one feel of the planetary atmosphere and noped right back in to get dressed properly. As an Oktarian from New Tobura, Maro was admittedly used to his fair share of humidity from growing up near on the coast of his largely desert planet. It didn't mean he liked it, and it certainly didn't mean he cared for it. But he was used to it enough that the jungle humidity of Deveron didn't bother him too much. What did irk him though was this job, which wasn't even a real job, just a means to an end until some of the non-guild sanctioned bounties came his way. After all there was nothing sadder than a beggar at a bar, and while he played that role more than a few times in the past few years Maro was respectable now. Okay, respectable wasn't the best word; but he wasn't boozing in a gutter in Hutta Town on Nar Shaddaa and that was respectable for him!

"Oktar Kleepus!" Maro exclaimed to himself under his helmet after the Oktarian had whacked his shin on a protruding root. While the full face coverage did it's part to keep his features hidden, and the Scout HUD linked to his datapad kept him on the right path, it didn't stop him from losing track of roots in all the foliage. So there he was, big bad bounty hunter, lightly hopping off the pain on one foot and muttering out quite the impressive string of expletives as the pain slowly died down.

"This bartender better have had the right coordinates for these artifacts. Because this is starting to become more than worth it Maro." He continued to mutter in his native tongue. The thrumming pain seeming to die down enough that he could set his foot down once more. The heavy boot squelching down into the rich mud below and leaving a thicker imprint than he might have wanted. Sure it might have meant tracks to follow, but in an environment such as this he would take his chances with tracks than water getting to his feet. He was confident he could hold his own against an attacker, sickness or whatever other creepy crawlies on the planet on the other hand were a different matter.

With a huff he came to a still and reached back for his own pack to sling it off his shoulder. The butt of his A280 which was slung over the opposite shoulder lightly tapping against the small of his back in the shifting of his equipment. Rumbling around through rations and water he dug out his datapad and confirmed the distance and direction was matching properly with his HUD.

"Okay, not far now Maro. Hopefully the syndicate will find the artifacts interesting enough. After all a good payday and we're back to the Captain's Wife yeah?" He spoke to himself, switching to Basic though holding his natural heavy accent. All the while he fumbled to pack the datapad away, sling the back back in place, and out of pure habit draw his gun hand down to the holster at his hip where his trusty DL-18 waited. Yeah, not far now until a wonderful payday.

It was about that moment that the loud SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!~ of the TIE Ranger shot through the air in the canopy above him. Without thinking his blaster cleared leather and was in his hand as his head shot up to follow the sound racing passed him. Shaking his head he holstered the blaster once more while muttering a new string of expletives in two different languages now. After all, as the proverbial saying went, there goes the neighborhood.

"Oktar Bakkvena, amateur just alerted everyone in the region." Maro defaulted back to his native tongue as he slung the blaster rifle off of his shoulder now. With the A280 firmly in hand Maro then began to move following the HUD's directions at a quickened pace. After all if he were anyone else in the region he would start to hurry to, if only to get good position. As such it only then made sense that he should hurry to out hurry the maybe others who might be hurrying! The plan was fool proof, sorta. Honestly he likely would play it by ear.

@GABA @Cazar @Kallus @Noctyr
 

Thalia Windraider

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GABA
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Reaching the site was not going to happen prior to the next rainfall as the sky broke open again, covering the jungle in a heavy rain. By this point, Thalia had just accepted it and drying off at any point was not going to be possible until she returned to her ship. However through the rainfall, Thalia heard something tear through the sky above the canopy; she was unable to see through the breaks in the tree leaves, but was certain it was a low flying ship, possibly one that was here also, since she couldn't think of any other reason someone would fly so low. The girl sighed and stepped up her pace, climbing over large roots and vines to get back on a trail that was not as impassible as the one she had been trekking through.

The others in the jungle were on a similar path to where Thalia was headed, clearly the same location reported by the bandits, but there was a lot of information that was left out of their tale.

As the Duros (@Kallus) listened and the rain came down, it was hard to decipher what it was he actually heard. It could have naturally been the breath of the dense jungle, or others who were searching for this place, such as the Jawa Jedi (@Cazar) who was making quite the racket through the jungle. However, it also could have been something or someone else entirely, a real possibility that there were native populations, those who settled on Devaron for a life that better than what was offered in the cities of the core. However, it were such individuals, they knew their home the best and they knew who would be a threat to them and who would not be, the feeling of eyes watching was something that could be a reality that the artifact theives and seekers may encounter.

Such a reality it would be for Maro (@Cero Serat) as he seemed distracted by the flying or landing TIE fighter that ripped through the clouds and rain, his HUD would pick up on something on the corner of his visor, a wisp among the vines and leaves. However, turning to focus or gain a better look would only provide him with more questions, possibly doubts as he worked to figure out what he just saw. It could delay him in reaching the coordinates if he chose to search for an answer, but it would ultimately be his choice in the manner.

This same phenomenon would happen on the edge of the jungle where the TIE that had swooped in and distracted everyone was now landed and its pilot deciding to wait out the rain. A wisp appeared on the jungle's edge and the young Jedi (@Noctyr) would feel something amiss, his eyes would be deceived if he searched, but the control panel in his cockpit would alert him to something bigger happening as it began to spark and random buttons turned on and off. When he would look out the window of his cockpit, he would see a boy who carried a likeness to Brahe.

And as these odd incidents occurred Thalia was not immune, she could feel something as her core began to twist with discomfort much like she was being followed, but as she turned to look, no one stood behind her that she could see. However, what remained were an extra set of footprints.

 

Cazus

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Jedi Knight

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Cazar
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Slogging, sloshing, sloppy, saturated soil slowed Cazus. The rain brought its full anger down upon the Jawa and the Jungle. It was too late to turn back though. He was now closer to the coordinates than he was to the shelters of town. The best way to get out of this was to hope the destination was a cave or had some structure or cover. A vacation to a hot, sandy planet was in order when this ordeal was done. Caz was already imagining the warm comfort of sinking into the dry sand dunes of Tatooine. Now that would be a better location for hidden artifacts.

A screaming ship from above caught the masked hero's attention, making him snap back to reality a bit. Others were closing in. Cazus could feel a disturbing amount of presences near him. He wondered how many were jungle natives and how many were treasure hunters. It would be impossible to tell them all apart. The little Jawa felt a bit like a womp rat running from a Krayt Dragon. He just had to get to the coordinates and the jungle would hopefully part ways.

The force came to Caz's aid as he leaped up over a steep, muddy hill. It was practically here. Any moment now he would stumble close to the... whatever he was looking for out here. He hoped. After much climbing, he took a small rest under a tree to see if he could spot a path, a building, a person, or something. A hint as to where this thing was would be nice. Coordinates were not exactly pin-point. The precision was only to within a certain area.

"I am the shadow in the desert, I am the mynock that chews your power cable, I am JUSTICE!" He shouted into the jungle, knowing there were people or things nearby.

His tiny, brown figure next to a brown tree covered in brown mud in a shadow would keep him well hidden so that he could get a response without being too easy of a target. He hunkered down, peering through the rain and trees to see if anything answered him. Plus it might give a hint to where the altar is if someone was there and freaked out about his call. Justice did not rest and justice would protect these goods from greed.

@GABA @Noctyr @Cero Serat @Kallus
 

Scudd Jastain

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Kallus
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Scudd stood stock still in that clearing, counting his heart beats as his eyes slowly moved over the dense greenery around him. One, two, three, 'did that branch just move or was it only the wind?' Four, five, six, 'who knows who or what is out here with me.' Seven, eight, nine, 'and yet here ai am in a clearing making a kriffing target of myself.'

The relative silence of those tense moments was shattered by the mounting screme of engines as a craft flew overhead, just above the top of the canopy. The sound soon cut off in a controlled fashion instead of receding into the distance, it had landed nearby. "Karavast!!" the Duros shouted at the top of his lungs, his worry of being watched suddenly overcome by the knowledge that now he was certain that others were looking for his prize.

and thus the frenzy set in, borderline panic honestly, though he would never admit it. The jungle was full of who knew what and untold other treasure hunter, but at least one for sure. Speed was of the essence, so he shoved his muddy foot back into his boot, finishing tieing it just as the clouds opened up in a torrent of heavy rain. Hiking his coat over his bulbous head, blaster in one hand he set off through the trees as fast as he could, heedless of the noise he was making. If something was in his way it would might fear his coming, and if someone wanted to stop him they would have to deal with a hail of bolts.

though that didnt stop him from turning to look behind him once in a while to sure he wasnt followed. It was during one of these glances back that he tripped over an exposed root and fell headlong into the mud, and down the slope he had been skirting. Coming to a halt at the bottom of the hill, covered in mud and dead foliage he was pleased to see he had at least had sense to hold on to his blaster.

with a heavy sigh he lay his head down with a squish. Just barely audible over the rain he though he heard one squeaky word. "Justice". Rolling his eyes he summoned his strength and called back "There is no justice!" Pushing himself up he mumbled "my coat is ruined."




@GABA @Cazus @Noctyr @Cero Serat
 

Brahe Sienar

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Jedi Padawan

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Noctyr
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Now unfortunately for the young padawan, he wasn't exactly the most in tune with the force unless he was piloting or working on a starship. There was just something about piloting or working on something that allowed the kid to really focus and feel his surroundings in the force. In this particular instance, although he felt at ease inside the cockpit of the TIE, it wasn't quite the same as outright flying. His focus was a bit lessened, and thus it was left to the ship to detect the oncoming visitor. He was then startled as the TIE suddenly reacted to the presence coming closer, causing him to sit up rather hastily.

Brahe raised an eyebrow, curious as to who the boy outside in the rain was. He stood up, popping open the TIE's exit hatch only slightly, just enough to peek the top half of his head out of the relative comfort of the starship's interior, while still protecting him from the downpour of rain outside.

He spoke first. "Uhh....hi there! I'm Brahe!" He made a little wave with his hand in greeting, flashing a slight smile. It was a little weird to Brahe that the kid was just sitting out there in the rain, but he figured that it was probably just a curious native. What unnerved Brahe more was the fact that he had specifically chosen the clearing because it had very good sight lines- the fact that the kid had even managed to get so close so quickly was rather impressive.

Admittedly, the padawan was a bit nervous. He didn't know who the kid was, after all.

@GABA @Kallus @Cazar @Cero Serat
 

Maro Baize

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Cero Serat
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Circumstance is a fickle thing and changes as fast as the time. It was a lesson one learned quickly in the Bounty Hunting life, and even quicker working for the people that Maro worked for. As such you learned that you either needed to roll with the changing of circumstance or you dealt with the consequences. So when Maro's HUD caught sight of the moving wisp at the edge of it's visor along the tree route he knew he needed to adjust. Call it paranoia, call it experience, call it what you will but it was better to be smart than dead. As such Maro began to move, his pace quickening somewhat as he had initially planned. But the direction he was moving in adjusted off the path from the artifact.

Each step he took in his light jog was squelching in the mud as the heavy downpour came crashing down through the upper canopy of the jungle. Maro's head was turning this way and that, feigning being lost and turned about in the jungle. Perhaps even desperately searching for some degree of cover as he continued that slightly quickened pace. His HUD all the while continued to signal to him he was going off course, but Maro was fine with the measure for now. It was all part of his scheme after all, and the route he took was in the grand scheme of things a minor setback at most. Sure he might not get there first, but he didn't have to be the first one there. Maro just had to make sure he was the one leaving with the prize.

Every now and then the bounty hunter would stop and and lean back, acting as if he were out of breath. Running through a rain like this, and in serious mud, could be draining to one's fatigue. But Maro's act, while based in that principle, was purely so he might occasionally scan the tree line. His goal was simple, he was trying to see if his HUD could pick up whatever it was that was following him. Or alternatively if his act of purposefully moving away from the artifact, paired with him seeming to be lost and out of breath, had convinced his stalkers he was no threat. Sincerely he was hoping for the later as he really didn't want to harm anything that he didn't have to.

@GABA @Cazar @Kallus @Noctyr
 

Thalia Windraider

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Ranger

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GABA
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The rains had ended as quick as they had started, just a few minutes of downpour and the rain stopped, the clouds lightening from their grey as they moved on with the winds. The human boy that Brahe (@Noctyr) spoke too was soaked by the rains, he didn't move as the padawan spoke from the (somewhat) safety of his TIE, more so due to the uncertainty of the stranger. It could have been this forest had seen so many malicious strangers he thought Brahe to be one of the same and the longer they looked at one another, the more frightened he looked and without saying anything, he ran back into the woods, yelling something, as though calling out for others to come. Brahe would no longer see the child once he went into the forest, but he would see smoke on the horizon as though a fire were started.

While the padawan debated to overcome his fear of strange children, the others began to have similar encounters. Thalia kept up her pace despite of the rain, but as the silence of the storm returned and the songs of birds and other creatures echoed through the tops of the trees, there was something else she heard. The twist of her stomach was still strong and she would look over her shoulder occasionally, but there was something else, or perhaps someone else as she stopped to listen, to look for anything out of place as she turned slowly, trying to catch something amiss. Her palm rested on blaster and the brush of leaves behind her caused the girl to jump. She turned watching carefully before she proceeded on an adjacent path.

Thalia knew someone was present, she was not the only one and as she left her original path to figure out who was following her, but as Maro (@Cero Serat) would scan his surroundings again, he would clearly hear the rustling of leaves and branches as Thalia tumbled out onto the path he was following. However, before he could react, there was a sound behind him as though a grunt and a groan loud enough to pull someone attention and it would, to an orange tinted Twi'lek and two human men. They were armed, their weapons raised, dressed uniformly in green and brown robes, "It is time for you to come with us. These jungles are not safe and I'm sure you're looking for some artifact, right?" the Twi'lek said in a low, deep voice. He didn't wait for the two to respond and nodded to the opposite direction Maro had been going, "Come, before the next rains fall."

The group expected them to follow.

Thalia still weary of the strangers she had just found glanced up at the armored man and shrugged her shoulders, her palm still rested on her blaster. She decided to follow.

The Jawa Jedi did not go unnoticed by the residents of these jungles as he declared his justice upon a hilltop, while Scudd (@Kallus) exited on the other side of that hill top, he was not alone in his exit. There was the distinct sound of giggling and the Jawa (@Cazar) would notice on the other side of the hilltop were Scudd and two light green Twi'lek women, dressed in green and brown robes (also armed), but did not seemed threatened by the guests in their forest home. "It is not often do we see Jawa or Duros, if ever in these parts." one spoke but paused as she looked to her partner, whispering something quietly. "We're going to guess you guys are here because some loonies talked about an artifact."

The other twi'lek shook her head, "Come along, you don't want to be out here when the next rains come through, c'mon, we'll explain at our home." she said nodding her head back in the direction of the jungle and where they would rendezvous with the others.

The Twi'leks expected them to follow.

 
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